13. Germany Flashcards

1
Q

What geographic quadrant of Germany are most wine regions located in?

A

The Southwest of Germany

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2
Q

What is the approximate split between red wine and white wine production in Germany?

A

2/3 white
1/3 red

Riesling is the most widely planted grape in the country, accounting for 1/5th of the total vineyard acreage. Muller-Thurgau (Riesling x Madeline Royal) is the second most heavily planted white grape.

Spatburgunder (Pinot Noir) is the most planted red grape and the second most planted of any grape (behind Riesling).

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3
Q

What are the top 3 red grapes of Germany?

A

Spatburgunder
Dornfelder
Blauer Portugieser

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4
Q

What are the top 3 white grapes of Germany?

A

Riesling
Mueller-Thurgau
Silvaner

And…
- Grauburgunder
- Weissburgunder

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5
Q

What are the basic quality levels of German wine?

A

Wein
Geschutze Geographische Angabe (GGA)
Qualitatswein
Pradikatswein

PGI = GGA
PDO = Qualitatswein and Pradikatswein

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6
Q

What are the subcategories for Pradikatswein in the German quality scheme?

A

In ascending order of grape ripeness:
Kabinett
Spatlese
Auslese
Beerenauslese
Eiswein
Trockenbeerenauslese

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7
Q

Describe a Kabinett wine:

A

Will be a high quality, Pradikatswein wine with a low sugar and likely low alcohol level. Light to medium body.

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8
Q

Describe an Auslese wine:

A

This will be a quality Pradikatswein wine, likely fuller body, higher alcohol.

Auslese = selected harvest.

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9
Q

What is a TBA in Germany?

A

Trockenberrenauslese: highest tier of grape ripeness / sugar levels of the Pradikatswein tier. These are made from individually selected, very late harvest grapes. TBAs are considered to be amongst the world’s best dessert wines.

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10
Q

Will a wine noted as Beerenauslese be a dry, off dry, or sweet wine?

A

Most likely to be a sweet wine.

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11
Q

What does an Oechsle measurement refer to?

A

Measure of sugar present in the grape must (measured in degrees). This is the basis of the Pradikatswein sub categorization by grape ripeness.

Kabinetts: 70-85
Dried Grapes: 150+

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12
Q

What is the hierarchy of geographical indications in Germany?

(Note: not PGI, PDO - but geogrpahical gropuings)

A

Anabaugebiete: 13 recognized wine regions for PDO wines. Both Qualitatswein and Pradikatswein require a single Anabaugebiete as a place of Origen.

Bereiche: There are 40 Bereiche. Each Anabaugebiete has at least one Bereiche. These are like district appellations.

Grosslagen: There are 160 Grosslagen. These are administrative groupings of vineyards, not terroir driven.

Einzellagen: There are 2700 Einzellagen. Each Grosslagen has numerous Einzellagen. In theory, this is a single vineyard, but these were created but putting much smaller vineyards together (there were once 30,000 Einzellagen). Each Einzellagen may be divided across multiple owners.

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13
Q

What is the name of the system used to measure sweetness of the grape must in Germany?

A

Oechsle - this is the basis for the subcateorization of Pradikatswein wines

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14
Q

True or Fasle: The Oechsle measurement for dried grapes is around 150 degrees.

A

True. A must for a Kabinett style wine would be sit in the 70-85 range.

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15
Q

How many Anabaugebiete are there in Germany?

A

13

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16
Q

Are all German wines attributable to an Anabaugebiete?

A

No. This is only relevant for PDO wines. Both PDO levels - Qualitatswein and Pradikatswein - must be attributable to a single Anabaugebiete.

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17
Q

How many Bereiche are there in Germany?

A

Approximately 40.

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18
Q

What is the relationship to Grosslagen designations and the terroir of the land?

A

Very little. These are administrative groupings more so than terroir driven groupings. There are approximately 160 Grosslagen in Germany today.

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19
Q

Approximately how many Einzellagen are there in Germany?

A
  1. (At one point, there were 30,000 - but significant consolidation has taken place.)
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20
Q

True or False: There may be multiple owners / operations within a single Einzellagen.

A

TRUE

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21
Q

True or False: The boundaries of a Grosslagen exist within the boundaries of a town.

A

False. Both a Grosslagen and an Einzellagen may cross town boundaries. It is for this reason that the addition of a village name alongside the name of the Einzellagen can be helpful to understand where the wine is truly coming from.

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22
Q

What was announced in April of 2021 regarding the geographical indication guidelines for Germany?

A

New guidelines are coming forward for the 2025 vintage which will place greater emphasis on village, commune, and vineyard specific appellations. This is a significant evolution from tradition.

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23
Q

What does Erzeugerabfullung mean?

A

“Producer bottled” - likely through a cooperative of growers

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24
Q

What does Gutsabfullung mean?

A

“Estate bottled”

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25
Q

What is the difference between the designation Erzeugerabfullung and Gutsabfullung?

A

Erzeugerabfullung indicates that the wine was made by a co-op / “producer bottle”. Gutsabfullung indicates that the wine was estate grown, produced, and bottled. Abfullur means that the wine was produced by a commercial winery who bought their fruit from other growers.

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26
Q

What does Abfuller mean on a German wine?

A

Indicates the wine comes from a commercial winery who has purchased the fruit in bulk from other growers.

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27
Q

All PDO wines of Germany will have an AP number on them. What is that?

A

This is an Amtliche Prufungsnummer. It identifies the wine, its village and winery of origin, and the specific testing center where the wine was approved.

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28
Q

Cite the four levels of the VDP classification system in Germany.

A

VDP Grosse Lage
VDP Erste Lage
VDP Orstwein
VDP Gutswein (lowest)

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29
Q

What does GG on the label of a German wine mean?

A

Grosses Gewach. The top of the quality of the VDP quality indications.

If it is a dry wine, it may also be labeled with Qualitatswein Trocken.

If it is a sweet wine, it will be labeled with one of the Pradikat levels: KSABET.

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30
Q

How do the Pradikat levels align with VDP levels for a German wine?

A

For the top three tiers of the VDP structure - Gross Lage, Erste Lage, Orstwein - the Pradikat levels are reserved purely to indicate level of ripeness of the grapes used, allowing the Pradikat levels to retain their original intention. Indications such as Trocken will be used to indicate a dry wine.

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31
Q

Unfermented grape juice, often used to sweeten a wine post fermentation is called: ____________

A

Sussreserve

32
Q

What is Sussreserve? When is it used?

A

Sussreserve is unfermented grape juice, used to sweeten wines after fermentation has been completed.

33
Q

How is residual sugar measured in Germany?

A

Grams of sugar per liter. A dry wine (Trocken) is up to 9 g / l. A Susa or sweet wine is more than 45 g / l.

34
Q

What are the German terms used to describe the sweetness of a wine?

A

Trocken, Halbtrocken (Fienherb), Liieblich, Suss

35
Q

True or False: Botrytis is key to the BA, TBA, and Eisweins of Germany.

A

True for BA and TBA. Not necessarily true for Eiswein.

36
Q

Minimum sweetness levels for grapes intended for use in BA, TBA, and Eiswein are measured in Oechsle, and vary by each _______________.

A

Anbaugebiet

37
Q

Name two areas of Germany well known for red wine production.

A

Wurrtemburg and Baden

38
Q

What does the labeling term Weissherbst mean on a German wine?

A

The wine is a rose of a single varietal, of PDO status.

39
Q

Which country is cited for the highest per capita consumption of sparkling wine: France, Germany, Italy

A

Germany

40
Q

Mosel is responsible for _____ of total wine production in Germany.

A

1/6

41
Q

_________________ is the most northern, quality wine region in the world.

A

Mosel

42
Q

Describe the soil pervasive throughout the Mosel.

A

Sandy top soil with broken slate throughout. This is critical for supporting ripening and helping with soil erosion (critical given the steep slopes of the vineyard).

43
Q

What wine region is anchored along the Saar and Ruwer tributaries of the Rhine river?

A

Mosel

44
Q

What are the key Rhine tributaries for the Mosel?

A

Saar and Ruwer rivers

45
Q

What is the central are of the Mosel called?

A

Mittelmosel

46
Q

What are the key grapes of the Mosel?

A

White: Riesling, Mueller-Thurgau, Elbing, Grauburgunder.

Red: Spatburgunder/Pinot Noir (10% of plantings)

47
Q

Are wines of the Mosel typically lower or higher in alcohol?

A

Lower - hovering around 10%

48
Q

True or False: Mosel has approximately 200 Einzellagen, placing it in the middle of the Anbaugebiet pack

A

The Mosel Anbaugebiet has over 500 Einzellagen, the most of any other Anbaugebiet. This is a signal of its quality.

49
Q

What are the key Bereiche of Mosel?

A

Bernkastel, Burg Cochem, Saar, Ruwertal

50
Q

Where are the Bereiche of Bernkastel, Burg Cochem, Saar, and Ruwertal?

A

The Mosel

51
Q

Which area produces more wine, Mosel or Rheingau?

A

Mosel, by far. Mosel produces roughly 1/6th (35%) of Germanys wine. Rheingau produces about 2%.

52
Q

What key geographical features contributes to the quality wines produced in Rheingau?

A

The Rheingau’s vineyards have some of the most privileged positions on the Rhine. The Rhine flows west for about 15 miles, allowing Rheingau to leverage slopes with full southern exposure, while continuing to benefit from the reflection of the river and the red slate soils for additional heat.

53
Q

What two grapes are most widely planted in Rheingau?

A

Riesling and Spatburgunder

54
Q

What is the name of the Bereich in Rheingau?

A

Johannisburg. It has more than 120 Einzellagen.

55
Q

Where is the Anabaugebiete of Nahe in relation to Rheingau?

A

Southwest

56
Q

What is a key grape of Nahe?

A

Riesling. White wines dominate this area, but Riesling represents only about 1/4 of the total planting.

57
Q

What is Germany’s largest wine region per production volume?

A

Rheinhessen

58
Q

What is Germany’s largest wine region in terms of total acres under vine?

A

Rheinhessen

59
Q

What are the three key grapes of the Rheinhessen?

A

Riesling, Mueller-Thurgau, Dornfelder

60
Q

Where the Pfalz region located?

A

To the west of the Rhine. To the north of French Alsace.

It is the second largest Anabaugebiet in terms of total acreage.

61
Q

Pfalz is known for:

A

Large volume plantings, simple, inexpensive wines.

Its primary grapes are Riesling, Müller-Thurgau, Grauburgunder, Dornfelder, and Spatburgunder

62
Q

____________ is the second largest Anbaugebiet in terms of total acreage.

A

Pfalz

63
Q

The easternmost Anbaugebiet is _____________.

A

Franken

Müller-Thurman and Silvaner are the key grapes here.

64
Q

What is the name of the river that runs through Franken?

A

The Main River

65
Q

What is a Bocksbeutel?

A

A traditional flask, the symbol is used on wines from Franken. (Either green or brown)

66
Q

Where is the Heissiche Bergstrasse Anbaugebiet?

A

It’s a small tip to the north of the Baden region.

Very small in production, only 1,150 acres. More than half of the acreage is planted to Riesling.

67
Q

Wurttemberg is a large region that focuses on red wine. Its key grapes include:

A

Trollinger, Schwarzriesling (Pinot Meunier) and Lemberger.

68
Q

Wurttemberg is in the ________________ river valley.

A

Neckar river valley

69
Q

Rainfall and humidity are higher in _________________ than in other parts of Germany.

A

Wurttemberg.

(which may be why Spatburgunder is not widely planted here)

70
Q

Baden is the largest Anbaugbiet in terms of total acreage (spanning 150 miles) but only the _____ largest in terms of vineyard acreage.

A

third largest

Spatburgunder is the most widely planted grape in Baden.

71
Q

The text indicates that Baden is well known for a certain type of wine, what is that?

A

Weissherbst, a single variety rose. (made from Spatburgunder)

72
Q

Baden has three distinct parts, not connected to each other. Two of them are along the eastern shores of the Rhine. Where is the third?

A

On the western side of Lake Constance.

73
Q

Where in Germany is Lake Constance?

A

In the south, on the Germany/Switzerland border. Baden and Wurttemberg have vineyards here.

74
Q

Although Ahr is one of the more northerly wine regions of Germany (50 N), it is known for: ______________________.

A

Red wines.

Red grapes account for 80% of the plantings here. Spatburgunder is the leading varietal here.

This is possible due to vineyard location on the steep, south facing slopes of the Ahr river.

75
Q

The main grape of the small, Mittelrhein region is:

A

Riesling

76
Q
A